


Barriers

by ExtremeLight9



Category: The Last Guardian (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Feels, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Minor Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-08-19
Packaged: 2018-11-05 04:31:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11006037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExtremeLight9/pseuds/ExtremeLight9
Summary: People were always warned not to go to the mountain, but one boy's curiosity leads him to an encounter that changes everything he thought they knew.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone, I'm back with a new TLG fic. I've been wanting to write this for months and now that it's summer I finally have the time to do it!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't no own the last guardian.

At the boy’s sleeping hut, the children were running around and chatting among each other, too energetic to go to sleep just yet.

 

“Children, quiet down!” their caretaker said as she stepped into the room with an old man. “The Elder is here.”

 

The children cheered and hurried to greet him. The old man smiled kindly at them before sitting down on the floor. The children sat in a circle around the man, ready to hear the story he had for them this night.

 

The Elder soon began telling them the story of an ancient beast. The creature was bigger than a bear with large wings, horns and sharp talons that were said to be able to cut through stone with ease. They used to be seen a lot in the past soaring the sky, spreading fear and terrorizing villagers.  

 

Among the kids, Tomiheanchu listened to the story with wide eyes. The description for the creature was odd yet almost scary to imagine. Did something like that really exist?

 

“The last time I’ve seen a Trico was about ten years ago at the bottom of the mountain. No one has been there since then in fear that the beast still resides there somewhere. That it is why it is strictly forbidden to venture anywhere near it.” The Elder said, his tone firm and serious. Tomi heard some kids audibly gulp at that.

 

Once the story was over, their caretaker decided it was time for the children to sleep. They thanked the old man for coming by and made their way to their beds.

 

Tomi sighed as he rolled on his bed for what felt like the hundredth time. He couldn’t stop thinking about the story the Elder told them. Was it true? Did a beast really live somewhere in the mountain? Was it as scary as the Elder said or was he just making things up?

 

The boy groaned quietly and lay on his back, staring at the ceiling with many question swirling in his mind.

 

\-------

 

“Tomi, wake up!”

 

Tomi winced and slowly opened his eyes to see his friend looking down at him.

 

“Come on, you’ll miss breakfast!” the boy muttered.

 

“Alright,” Tomi said and sat up.

 

“Are you okay? You look tired?” he asked.

 

“I’m fine. I just didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.” Tomi stated, rubbing the exhaustion from his eyes. He had no idea when exactly did he manage to fall asleep yesterday.

 

The other boy shrugged. “Well, you better hurry or there won’t be anything left for you.” He said before walking away.

 

Tomi let out a heavy yawn and hurried after him.

 

Later that morning, the children left the village to play in the forest. They weren’t allowed to go too far from the village or they will get into trouble with the adults.

 

It took them a few minutes until they finally decided to play hide and seek which was one of Tomi’s favorite games.

 

Wasting no time, Tomi ran off through the forest looking around for a place to hide in. He soon found a huge tree which made the perfect hiding spot for him. He sat there for a while, listening attentively for the sound of footsteps.

 

It wasn’t long until something else got the boy's attention.

 

The mountain.

 

Tomi bit his lip, feeling his curiosity from last night burning once again. He glanced behind the tree and then at the mountain again. _No, I shouldn’t. The Elder warned us not go there. I’ll get into trouble if someone found out!_

 

But there was nothing wrong if he went to check, right? After all, the beast was last seen a decade ago. There might not be nothing there for all they knew. It’ll be just for a couple of minutes and then he’ll quickly head back home. No harm done. And if anyone asks about where he was he’ll just say he found a really good hiding spot and lost track of time. Having made up his mind, Tomi glanced around once more before running off towards the mountain.

 

The journey had been laborious to see the least. The forest was thick and he kept losing sight of the mountain peak. He had to climb a tree every time he got lost.

 

After jumping over logs and tripping over rocks more times than he liked, the boy finally made it to the base of the mountain. The first thing he saw was a large cave and just for a split-second the boy mistook it for a monster’s maw. Sighing in relief and feeling embarrassed for his jumpiness, he began searching the clearing for any sign that someone or something lived here, but he found nothing.

 

All that was left was the cave.

 

Curiosity getting the best of him, Tomi slowly made his way inside. He couldn’t see much. The light from the entrance didn’t reach very far. Stealing himself, the child began heading deeper into the cave, ready to run at any sign of danger.

 

Tomi blinked when he thought he saw something moving far ahead. Taking a few cautious steps forward, the boy squinted and tried to get a glimpse of what was hiding in the dark.

 

Suddenly, a pair of bright yellow eyes appeared making the child’s breathing hitch. The two stared at each for a while unmoving.

 

Finally, the creature in the dark stood up and Tomi’s blood ran cold when he realized the thing was three times bigger than him!

 

As soon as the shock wore off, Tomi quickly turned around and ran towards the exit as fast possible, stumbling through the dark in his panic.

 

The boy made it out of the cave, the light blinding his eyes for a moment. He dared to looked and gasped when the creature burst out of the cave too. It matched the description the Elder gave them. It was a Trico for sure.

 

The beast let out a growl that sent a shiver down the boy’s spine before coming after him. Tomi yelped and ran as fast as his feet could carry him towards his village, but then he realized something. He would be leading the beast to his village where it can hurt people. The children were still playing in the forest near it!

 

Not knowing what else to do, the boy took a different direction. Despite running as fast as he could, the beast seemed to be catching up to the boy really fast. Tomi knew he had no chance of outrunning it so he tried running through some trees hoping to lose his chaser.

 

Just then, the boy cried out when he tripped over a tree root and fell forward. His shoulder hit the ground hard and he found himself rolling down a slope. The earth then disappeared from beneath the boy and the next thing he knew he was falling down.

 

He soon hit the ground and lost consciousness.  

 

**\-------**

 

“Ugh,” Tomi opened his eyes and groaned. His body ached and his head was throbbing. He tried to stand up and winced at the pain in his leg. He glanced down at the leg to see a long cut.

 

He finally looked up to see he fell down a hole. Panicking, Tomi tried to climb out of the hole, but the rocks crumbled under his touch causing him to fall down on his back. The boy winced at the pain coursing through his limps, but still managed to stand up again. He gulped once the realization finally sunk in.

 

He was stuck.

 

Dread and fear filling his heart, Tomi screamed as loud as he could hoping someone would hear him. He waited for several minutes, but only silence answered his call.

 

Nobody was there, but then again why would they be? The mountain was a forbidden place. No one would set foot anywhere near it and no one knew that Tomi was here.

 

The boy felt tears well up in his eyes and he curled up on the ground. What will he do now? How will he get out of here? Why didn’t he listen to the Elder’s warnings? If only he just listened then none of this would have happened and he’ll be back home with his family right now.

 

The boy didn’t know how much time has passed until he finally heard the sound of approaching footsteps.

 

“Is anybody there?” he called at the top of his lungs. “Help, I can’t get out!” The footsteps grew closer and the boy felt relief wash over him, but then he noticed how the footsteps sounded a lot heavier than they should be.

 

Just then, a shadow blocked the sunlight, but instead of another human like he expected he was greeted by the sight of the beast’s face causing him to yelp and fall backwards.

 

The creature growled and tried to squeeze its head through the hole. When that didn’t work it reached out its paw towards him, but its arm was too short to reach the child. Tomi felt slightly relieved knowing that it couldn’t get to him.

 

The beast finally moved away from the hole and for a moment Tomi thought it gave up and left, but then he yelped when something fell into the hole. The beast’s tail.

 

Tomi stared at the tail in confusion. The beast didn’t try to draw it out and seemed to be waiting for something. It would be easy for the boy to use it to climb up-

 

Tomi’s thoughts came to a screeching half. No, it couldn’t possibly be trying to help him. Certainly not. He shook the silly notion away. This was just a trick. The beast was probably trying to get him out of the hole so it can eat him.

 

The gears in the boy’s mind then began turning. Maybe he can take advantage of this to escape.

 

Tomi grabbed onto the tail and carefully began climbing up. Once he deemed it safe enough, Tomi quickly jumped off and landed on the ground. He winced at the pain shooting in his legs, but he managed to ignore it as he began to run again.

 

Tomi expected the beast to start chasing him once again, but when he looked back he was surprised to see the beast hadn’t moved from its spot at all. It simply stood there and watched him run in silence. It then let out a low bark that held no aggression before turning around and leaving.

 

Tomi stopped running and watched it walk away in stunned silence.

 

What……what happened?

 

He brought a hand to his head as he tried to process what he saw. Why? Why did the beast just let him go like that? Why spare him? Nothing made sense right now.

 

Deciding not wait any longer in case it comes back, Tomi hesitantly ran down the forest path.

 

Once he made it back to the village, the boy’s parents freaked out at the sight of his injury. When they asked him about it, he told them that he tripped over a tree root while playing with his friends. They didn’t seem all that convinced, but his mother treated his wound anyway.

 

Later that night while everyone was sleeping, Tomi quietly snuck out of his bed and made his way to the window. It was dark outside, but he payed that no mind. He leaned over and stared at the distant mountain, thinking over everything that happened today.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the positive feedback. I really appreciate it!

“Look out!”

 

The ball hit Tomi before he could react and fell on his side. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed the sore spot in his head.

 

“Are you okay?” One of the kids asked.

 

“I’m fine,” he said.

 

“Are you sure? This is third time you spaced out today, Tomi.” Another boy pressed on.

 

“Oh don’t worry. I just have a lot on my mind.” He shrugged with a smile, hoping that will be enough to convince them. The kids seemed to buy his excuse and began to walk away.

 

Tomi stood up and dusted his clothes. Well, that was no lie. He had been thinking a lot lately, about the mountain and most importantly about the beast. It had been three days since the incident and the boy couldn’t stop thinking about what happened.

 

It just made no sense. Why did the creature let him go after chasing him like that? Why didn’t it devour him let like the legends said so? This confused Tomi to no end. The more he thought about it the more questions he had.

 

Once again Tomi considered telling someone about it, but who? His parents? The Elder? Maybe one of his friends?

 

Well, he would have to scratch out the idea of telling his parents considering how worried they were when he came back to the village injured. He couldn’t imagine their reactions if he ever told that he went to the forbidden mountain and got chased by a giant monster.

 

And the Elder was one who strictly warned them not to go anywhere near it in the first place. Tomi knew he will be in so much trouble if the old man found out about his little adventure.

 

The boy could trust one of his friends with his secret, but what if they don’t believe him? Even Tomi found his own story hard to believe? Or worse, what if they tell on him. That could lead to something so much worse.

 

And that left him with…..nobody.

 

The boy groaned and buried his face in his hands. This was getting him nowhere. He had no idea what to do and no one to tell about what he witnessed. Sighing, he glanced all the way to the distant mountain before hurrying after his friends.

 

**\------**

_What am I doing?_

 

Tomi thought as he glanced around the room briefly. All the kids were sitting and eating lunch, but luckily no one was paying attention to him. He carefully reached into his bowl and took out a piece of meat before quickly hiding it in his shirt. He grimaced slightly, but still repeated this process a few more times without anyone taking notice.

 

Later, he went to find his mom. It didn’t take him long until he found her near the women’s’ hut.

 

“Hi mom, can I borrow your satchel for a while?” he asked.

 

His mother blinked in confusion. “What do you need it for?”

 

“I’m going to look for mushrooms in the forest, if that’s okay.” He answered without hesitation.

 

The woman raised an eyebrow at the odd reason. “Oh, well alright. Let me go get it for you,” she said and walked into the hut. Soon, she came back with the satchel, but she hesitated in giving it to him. “Don’t wander too far and…and watch where you step and be sure to come back before sunset!”

 

Tomi’s face flushed. His mother was the kind of the person to worry a lot and can be overprotective sometimes. That time when he came back from the forest with all those injuries had made her more anxious about letting him go outside of the village. “I’ll be fine, mom.” He muttered.

 

His mother sighed. “I know, I know….just be careful, alright?”

 

The boy smiled reassuringly. “I will, I promise!” he said before sprinting away.

 

Once he was alone, he put the meat he saved along with some apples for himself. If he was going to head into the forest then he wanted to be more prepared this time. Greeting some hunters coming back from a successful hunt, he made his way out of the village and took the same path towards the daunting mountain.

 

On his way through the forest Tomi’s mind was a chaotic mess. The closer he got to the base of the mountain, the more nervous he became. What was he thinking? Why was he coming back here again? Hadn’t he barely survived the last time? Every instincts in the boy was screaming at him to turn around, to run away and never come back. Move on, forget that encounter ever happened.

 

But he couldn’t. The questions, the confusion. Tomi couldn’t stand it anymore. It’s been five days and the boy can’t stop thinking about that incident. He had to get some answers. Even if it meant going back to the forbidden place.  

 

_But what about the beast?_

 

The thought made Tomi stop in his tracks for a second. He honestly didn’t know what he’ll do when he faces the beast again. _Well, it didn’t attack me before. Maybe it won’t this time either._

 

_It could’ve been not interested back then. What if it decides to finish you off when it sees you agai-_

 

Tomi quickly marched down the forest path before he could change his mind. Now was not the time to be scared. He had to get there.

 

He soon walked through some shrubs and stepped into the clearing. The sight of the cave sent a shiver down the boy’s spine and made him take a step back as he recalled the first time he had been here.

 

Steeling himself, the boy walked quietly towards the cave, his heart hammering in his chest. Now he needed a way to draw the beast’s attention without having to enter the dark cave again. Looking around for a moment, the child picked up a rock and tossed it into the cave entrance.

 

Tomi waited for the creature to come out, but when nothing happened, the boy threw another rock deeper into the cave. He heard it hit the ground and the sound echoed through the walls of the cave, but there was still no sign of the beast or anything.

 

Just when he was starting to assume that the cave was empty, the boy gasped when two pair of violet orbs flashed brightly in the dark. They glared at him fiercely before a loud growl vibrated through the walls of the cave.

 

Suddenly, the beast burst out of the cave causing the boy to fall on his back in fright. The beast growled as its massive form loomed above the human child, its bright eyes flashing dangerously down at him.

 

Beyond terrified, Tomi covered his head and braced himself for what would come next.

 

But nothing happened.

 

Tomi slowly opened his eyes and looked up to see the beast staring at him in confusion. Its eyes then widened in what seemed to be recognition and the violet light faded from them.

 

Tomi bit his lip and carefully stood up, making sure to maintain eye contact with the beast in case it tries something, but it kept eyeing the boy curiously as if it can’t figure him out.

 

The weight on his shoulder reminded the boy of the food in his satchel. Maybe he could get on the beast’s good side with it. Shakily, the boy reached into the satchel causing the beast’s eyes to flash threateningly at him again.

 

Panicking, he quickly pulled out a slice of meat, holding it out for the creature. While the beast still seemed wary of the boy, it tilted its head to the side before leaning closer and sniffing the offered meal suspiciously, a low sound coming from within its stomach.

 

Not sure how to feed the large creature, Tomi tossed it. With swiftness that startled the child, the beast snatched it from the air. Its face scrunched up briefly and a slight pink ting still shone in its eyes before returning to normal. It glanced down at the boy and made a demanding noise.

 

Tomi took out another slice and toss it with less hesitation, watching in awe as the beast caught it with ease again. How could such a large creature move so quickly?

 

The boy continued feeding the creature until soon he reached inside the satchel only to find out that he ran out of meat. He gulped and turned to the creature. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have any more meat.”

 

The beast gave another demanding sound, moving its muzzle closer to the satchel, causing the boy to back away.

 

“H-Hey stop! I said there is nothing left!” Tomi snapped, not wanting it to damage his mother’s satchel.

 

The beast let out what sounded like a huff before lying on its forepaws and looking away, having lost interest in the human.

 

Now that the threat of being devoured seemed to be gone, Tomi sighed in relief and sat cross-legged on the ground, watching the creature thoughtfully. This was the first time he got a good look at the beast without worrying about his life. The child could now see that the creature wasn’t as scary as he previously thought it was. It was certainly huge and intimidating, but not as terrifying as the stories made it out to be.

 

The sight of it lying on the ground reminded Tomi of the cats and dogs back in the village. Curiously, the boy carefully began moving closer to the beast who wasn’t paying attention to him. He stopped near its neck and reached out to touch its fur, but the beast jerked back from his touch and growled, its violet glare burning into him.

 

The boy yelped and fell back in surprised. He quickly raised his hand in surrender. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

 

The beast’s face remained distrustful for a while until it noticed the child’s bandaged leg, the one he injured when he fell into that hole. It lowered its head to look at the leg and sniffed it before glancing at the boy with its ears drooping.

 

It almost looked….guilty.

 

Tomi slowly realized what the creature was thinking and quickly sat up. “H-Hey, it’s okay. My mom fixed it for me. It doesn’t hurt anymore, see?” he stomped on the ground to prove his point only to internally wince at the pain shooting through it. He tried to hide his pain with a strained smile.

 

The beast blinked at his words and the boy wonder if it actually understood what he was saying. It still kept its head low and stared at his bandaged leg. With its face so close, Tomi couldn’t help reaching out and gently touching its muzzle.

 

Before it could back away, he began rubbing circles on the spot. Tension slowly seeped from the beast’s features and began to relax into his touch, letting out a soft mewl.

 

Tomi felt a small smile grace his lips and for the first time since they met, he felt at ease around the beast.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, thanks for all the feedback you’ve been giving me. I just got a PS4 yesterday and I FINALLY got to play The Last Guardian for the first time. I’ve only seen videos of the game and I’m really excited to experience this great game! 
> 
> Also, Trico will be now referred to as a “He” since the boy wasn’t aware of that in the first two chapters which is why Trico was referred to as an “It”. I just wanted to clear that and I hope it doesn’t bother anyone.

Deep inside the cave, the beast was lying on ground sleeping soundly.

 

“Trico?”

 

His left ear twitched and he tiredly rolled over, trying to ignore the voice.

 

“Hey Trico, are you there?” the voice called again and the beast grimaced, curling up harder attempting to block out the calls.

 

“Tricooooo!”

 

The beast’s eyes snapped open and let out an annoyed noise. He stood up and stretched his back before lazily making his way outside to see what the human wanted this time. Did he bring him food again?

 

He closed his eyes when the sunlight blinded him momentarily before glancing down at the child who was beaming excitedly.

 

“Hello, Trico. Look what I got!” he said, showing him the odd round object in his hands.

 

The beast, Trico, as the boy kept calling him for some reason tilted his head to the side as the boy dropped the object on the ground. He leaned down and sniffed it for a moment before taking it in his mouth.

 

“Trico, stop! That’s not food!” The boy gasped, waving his hands frantically. Trico blinked and quickly dropped the object, not sure what he did wrong.

 

The boy picked up the object and held it in his hands. “This is a ball, Trico. You’re supposed to play with it, not eat it.” He explained slowly. “Like this!”

 

Tomi demonstrated by dropping the ball again and kicked it, watching it bounce away. He then ran after it and continued kicking it around the clearing. Grinning, he send it to the beast encouragingly. “Your turn now!”

 

Trico stared at the ball in confusion before hesitantly pushing it forward with his paw like he had seen the human do. The beast didn’t know what came over him then, but he suddenly felt the urge to do it again. He pushed the ball again and again, and before he knew it he was chasing after it, the ground shaking with every step.

 

“Whoa, be careful!” the boy muttered between his laughter. Trico pounced and fell into crouch position in front of the ball, playing with it with both of this paws. The grogginess he felt earlier was long gone. He looked up at the human and then knocked the ball with his snout over to him, barking expectantly.

 

Smiling, Tomi caught the ball and ran off with it causing the beast to chase after him. Trico made sure not to run too fast and risk hurting the child.

 

Tomi soon stopped and finally tossed the ball back to the beast, but when Trico reached for the ball accidently pierced it with his claw. Startled, the beast tried to shake it off, but it remained stuck there.

 

“Hold on,” Tomi came over and pulled it out, watching in dismay as white fur fell from inside of it. “Oh no,” he groaned.

 

Trico’s ears dropped and he lowered his head in shame for ruining something that belonged to the friendly human.

 

Tomi noticed this and gave him a small smile. “Hey, it’s okay. Mom can fix it for me!” he said. Trico didn’t really understand what the human was saying, but he could tell he was trying to assure him.

 

The boy then began petting his side and the beast purred, lowering his head for him to reach. The child grinned and scratched his ear. It was an amazing feeling. He lay on his side as the child continued petting and scratching him to the point where the beast felt the lull of sleep once again and yawned loudly.

 

The petting suddenly stopped and Trico glanced up at the human in confusion. “I should go home now Trico.” He stated, grimacing when he picked up his torn ball.

 

The beast let out a whine, knowing the human would leave once again. He didn’t want that. He enjoyed playing with the boy.

 

Tomi caught on to that and laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon. Bye!” he muttered before turning around and soon disappeared into the forest.

 

Huffing in annoyance, Trico lay on his forepaws, staring at the distance in boredom. He really wished his human friend would stay a little longer. He had been living in this mountain for a very long time and not much happened around this part of the land. The most exciting thing he could do was chase after forest animals or hunt for his next meal, but other than that there was nothing for him to do.

 

Not to mention it can be rather lonely around here, especially at night, but Trico never dared to try leaving the place in fear of being found or attacked by humans.  

 

The child was the first new thing Trico had seen around here in many years. When he first showed up, the beast was wary of him, but now he couldn’t help looking forward for the next time he will come back.

 

Just when the beast was thinking of going back to the cave, his ears shot up at the sound of a scream in the distance.

 

**\------**

  

Tomi was humming quietly to himself as he made his way through the forest. He looked down at his ruined ball and sighed. He had no idea how he will explain this to his parents.  

 

Well, no matter. He will think of something. Maybe he could say it fell into shrub or it was just too worn out or-

 

The boy froze in his tracks when he suddenly heard something move behind him. Thinking that the beast followed him like last time, the boy turned to scold him only for the words to die in his throat.

 

Right there, in front of Tomi, was a large black bear. The child felt his blood run cold and took a step back as the animal’s solid dark eyes stayed on him. The ball slipped from the boy’s shaking hands as he cried out and ran away as fast as he could, stumbling in fright.

 

Without thinking, he quickly ran to the closest tree and started climbing it frantically. Once he was high enough, he glanced down to see the bear growl viciously at the base of the tree.

 

Tomi gulped and tried to calm himself down. It’s okay, he’ll safe up here. Now he just had to wait and eventually the bear will get bored and leave.

 

Suddenly, the boy yelped as the tree shook. Looking down confused, he saw the bear slam its paws against the tree bark forcefully. It did this several times until Tomi couldn’t hold on anymore and fell off.

 

In a split second, the boy reached out blindly and managed to grab onto a branch. His heart was hammering violently in his chest as he hung there panting and not knowing what to do. The bear growled in frustration and began shaking the tree once again, waiting for its prey to fall.

 

The boy tried to climb up the branch, but the constant shaking prevented him from do so. His knuckles turned white and began to throb. He knew he couldn’t hold on for much longer. He screwed his eyes shut, bracing himself.

 

Just then, the bear stopped what it was doing much to the boy’s relief and confusion. He looked down to see it staring at something in the trees. Soon the sound of heavy footsteps filled the air and with a loud roar, Trico emerged from the trees.

 

“T-Trico!” Tomi exclaimed, relief washing over him.

 

The beast stepped towards the bear, violet eyes flashing dangerously as if daring it to face him.

 

The bear backed away, taken aback by the sheer size and appearances of its opponent before turning around to flee into the bushes.

 

Tomi felt a huge grin split his face at the sight and cheered for his friend only to lose whatever grip he had on the branch. His heart skipped a beat as he found himself falling quickly only to be snatched from the air swiftly by Trico. The boy hung there by a piece of his shirt for a moment before he was placed down on the ground. Trico leaned over, looking down at him worriedly.

 

Without a second thought, Tomi ran over and Trico barely had the time to lower his head to meet him. The child hugged him tightly, smiling and feeling his eyes mist over. “Thank you, Trico.” He said quietly and the beast mewled as he gently stroked his face.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, I finished playing The Last Guardian a few days ago and I couldn’t stop crying at the ending. Even though I knew how it will end I still burst into tears. It was a great experience and I enjoyed every minute of it! :)
> 
> Anyway, on with the story.

Tomi was in the boy’s hut, searching through their belongings and toys. Sighing in frustration, he stood up and went to look in the shelves. It took him a few minutes until he found what he wanted and put them inside the satchel before leaving the room.

 

He made his way through the village watching everyone going on about their day. He waved at few of his friends and when he passed one of the village’s dogs, he leaned over to pet it. The dog sniffed his hand and its face scrunched up. It slowly backed away from him warily.

 

Tomi stared at the dog and looked down at his hand in confusion. Why was the dog afraid of him? This never happened before. He thought for a while and then realized something.

 

Could it….could it smell Trico’s scent on him?

 

This made the child tense up and he began walking away fast before the dog could start barking and get everyone’s attention on him.

 

“Tomi!”

 

The boy’s heart skipped a beat at his mother’s voice. Did she find out? How!?

 

He shakily turned to see his mother approaching him with his ball in her hands. “Here, I stitched it for you.”

 

Tomi took the ball and grinned nervously, trying his best to hide the relief he was feeling. “T-Thanks, mom. I appreciate it!”

She frowned. “You haven’t told me how it got damaged like that. The tear was huge.”

 

“Oh, it fell in a thorn bush while I was playing.” He said with a shrug. “Anyway, I should be going now. Thanks again!” he said and quickly walked away from her.

 

“T-Tomi wait!” she called, but he was already gone. She sighed in defeat and wondered what the boy does whenever he left like this. He would disappear for hours on certain days and then come out of nowhere later.

 

A memory from two days ago came to mind. She had taken one of his dirty shirts to wash them and noticed how it smelled weird, like an animal’s fur, but she couldn’t tell what it was.

 

The woman shook the silly thought away. There were a lot of animal in the village and her son could have been just playing with one. With a sigh, she made her way back inside the hut.

 

**\------**

Tomi grunted as he wandered through the forest, eyeing the bushes carefully in case a bear or some other predator was nearby. He didn’t want to risk being chased by a wild animal for the third time.

 

He felt his muscles slowly relax once he stepped into the clearing. He went over to the cave entrance and stepped in, making sure to stay in the light. “Trico?”

 

It didn’t take long for the beast to come out and he thrust his face forward with an expectant noise.

 

Tomi chuckled and placed his ball down. “Alright, alright. Take it easy.” He began petting Trico’s face and smiling at the pleased sounds coming out of the creature. Trico then moved away to stare at the satchel curiously, his tail shifting in anticipation.

 

Tomi rolled his eyes. “I’m really beginning to think you like me just because I bring you things.” He said jokingly. He reached into his satchel and tossed a chunk of meat to Trico which the beast caught with ease.

 

Tomi then sat down and began taking out several clay containers from his satchel. Trico sat on his forepaws and watched him curiously, wondering what the child had brought him this time.

 

Tomi opened one of the paint containers and dipped his finger into the red paint. He then pulled it out to show it to Trico.

 

That turned out to be a terrible idea as Trico jerked back and made a worried sound at him. It took Tomi a minute to realize what was wrong and gasped. “Wait, this is not what you think! I’m not hurt. This is just paint!” he said, waving his hand to show that he wasn’t in pain, but the beast didn’t look convinced.

 

Tomi frowned and opened another container filled with black paint. He quickly dipped another finger and showed it to him. “See? It doesn’t hurt.” He said, rubbing his fingers together.

 

He suddenly had a very silly idea and drew two lines on both his cheeks, grinning up at the beast to put him at ease.

 

Trico looked as if he couldn’t make sense of what was he seeing and Tomi knew he probably looked beyond ridiculous right now. His face burned in embarrassment at thought of his friends seeing him like this.

 

Trico leaned closer and tilted his head to the side, inspecting him curiously.

 

The child got a mischievous smile. “Hold still,” he stepped closer and began painting the beast’s face. Trico was tense, but didn’t try to move away.

 

Soon enough, the boy took a step back to admire his work. He had drawn two big black eyebrows and a circle on the beast’s forehead. Trico blinked unaware of what he had done.

 

Tomi snorted and had to close his mouth to prevent himself from laughing.

 

It was no use.

 

He burst into laughter and clutched his stomach. Trico huffed in annoyance and knocked him off his feet with his nose.

 

“Hey!”

 

**\-----**

After whipping the face paint from the two of them, the boy sat on the ground and not knowing what else to do he began drawing on the cave wall in boredom. He drew a small black figure and then thought of something else.

 

He began drawing Trico. He would glance back at the creature every now and then before continuing on. He took a step back when he finished.

 

“What do you think?” the child asked, pointing at the painting. It was of a tiny human with a huge beast looking down at him. It wasn’t anything great since he used his fingers, but he tried his best.

 

Trico stared at the wall painting for a while curiously and then gave him a low bark though he didn’t know if it’s a sign of approval or not. It was always hard to figure what Trico was feeling since he wasn’t a very expressive creature to begin with.

 

Deciding that he probably will never get an answer for that, he turned to the wall and dipped his finger into the yellow paint container. He then stood up and made a circle, intending to draw a sun. He managed to finish the outline and then moved to paint the center.

 

And that’s when Trico let out a loud cry that Tomi never heard before, his eyes flashing brightly in the dark.

 

“T-Trico?” Tomi stammered, worried that he enraged his friend somehow, but the creature didn’t seem to be angry. He almost looked……scared.

 

“What’s wrong?” the boy asked in concern, trying to figure what came over his friend. Trico didn’t seem to hear him as he pressed himself against the wall making low noises and attempting to make himself look smaller.

 

He was acting like a cornered animal, trying to be intimidating and at the same time afraid.

 

The boy soon realized he wasn’t the cause of Trico’s distress. He followed the beast’s gaze to see he was actually staring at the unfinished painting. Trico was staring at the shape, captivated by it.

 

The boy looked between the painting and the beast confused. Why was Trico bothered by it? What was it about this shape that caused such fear? To a huge creature like Trico nonetheless?

 

Unsure of what to do, Tomi went over and whipped away the shape with his hand, leaving a smear across the wall. The violet light finally faded from Trico’s eyes and he blinked as if he was waking up from a dream.

 

“Are you okay?” the boy asked. Trico grunted, but still looked tense.

 

“I….uh….” Tomi was lost on what to do. He suddenly caught sight of his ball and immediately fetched it. “Do you want to play with me again?”

 

Wanting a distraction as well, the beast sat up and walked out of the cave. Tomi hurried after him, trying to put this incident at the back of his mind. Whatever what happened back there was, it was over and he didn’t want to think about it.

 

The two played in the clearing for about half an hour before Trico finally made his way back inside the cave and lay down yawning. Panting, Tomi dropped his ball and lay against the beast’s soft feathers. He found himself gazing outside of the cave for a while until he slowly drifted off to sleep.

 

**\------**

 

Tomi slowly opened his eyes and let out a soft yawn feeling Trico shifting behind him. He looked outside and gasped.

 

The sun was setting.

 

Tomi scrambled to get up and quickly reached for his satchel, putting everything back inside. Trico looked down at him in confusion.

 

“I need to go back!” Tomi said urgently. He reached for the ball, but then changed his mind. “You know what? I’ll leave it here. Then you can have something to play with while I’m gone. Just be careful with it, okay?” He told him with a smile.

 

Tomi quickly said goodbye and left. He hurried down the forest path as the sun slowly disappeared in the distance. He hoped he could reach the village before it got dark or else he’ll have no way to see the path. 

It took him some time, but his village finally came into view. The boy sighed in relief and he stopped running.

 

“Tomi!”

 

The boy was surprised when his dad and another man came over to him. The man was taller than his dad and had a thick beard.

 

His dad bent down and immediately began checking on him. “Are you okay? Where were you?”

 

“I….I took a nap under a tree and lost track of time. Sorry.” He answered and that wasn’t a complete lie.

 

Akira, his dad’s friend, smiled. “See? The boy is fine. I told you were worrying over nothing.”

 

His dad sighed and turned to Tomi. “Just don’t do that again. I was so worried about you.” He said and the two led him back inside.

 

**\------**

Later that night while everyone was asleep, Tomi woke up to the sound of the bell ringing outside. The bell was only used in case of an emergency or if the village was in danger. He sat up and looked around to see the other boys were awake too. They could hear yelling and screaming from beyond the walls.

 

Their caretaker suddenly entered the room looking breathless. “Children, stay away from the window!” she muttered and closed the window shut. The kids grew frightened now.

 

“W-What’s going on!?”

 

“Is something outside?”

 

“I’m not sure, but we need to we need to stay here until it’s safe to come out.” The woman tried to seem calm, but they could see she was just as scared.

 

Tomi gulped nervously and sat down with everyone. They waited for several tense minutes until the cries outside have all died down. For a while no one knew what to do expect murmur nervously to each other.

 

Tomi suddenly heard someone enter the room and looked over to see it was the Elder.

 

“Is everyone alright?” he asked in concern.

 

“Y-Yes,” their caretaker answered shakily. The children didn’t waste any time asking the old man about what happened and if their village have been raided by another tribe.

 

Tomi waited anxiously for the Elder to answer. The old man hesitated for some reason and sighed.

 

“A Trico has attacked the village.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that took an unexpected turn. I haven’t decided on how many chapter are left of the story, but I’ll let you guys know once I do.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Heads up, there is a lot of angst in this chapter so be prepared.

Tomi stared blankly at the massive hole in the wall in stunned silence. It was huge, almost as if something burst out of the girls’ hut. There were men already working on closing it.

 

Apparently, a flying beast had entered the village while everyone was asleep and snatched a girl from inside one of the huts.

 

_A Trico._

 

Tomi gulped nervously and took a step back feeling nauseous by the thought. He quickly turned around and slowly walked away, not wanting to look at it anymore.

 

Sleeping last night had been near impossible after the incident. Everyone was shaken by the incident and on edge. No one was allowed to leave the village or go to the forest except the hunters of course. All adults who witnessed the attack were not allowed to discuss it with children.

 

Tomi sighed and glanced around. There were people whispering among each other while others seemed to be trying to go on with their day as if nothing happened, but they were clearly just as shaken as everybody else.

 

Unease was hanging over the village like a dark cloud and it’s all because of-

 

The boy stopped and shook the horrible thought away. No, it can’t be possible. Trico would never do something like that. Maybe the Elder was wrong. After all, no one had seen a Trico in a decade. It could have been another kind of beast. That had to be it!

 

“Out of the way!”

 

Tomi quickly moved out way as two men passed by him carrying a wooden pole.

 

Sighing, the child then noticed two of his friends sitting by the doctor’s hut looking rather bored. “What are you doing here?” Usually they would be playing around this time of the day. In fact, Tomi looked around and realized there weren’t a lot of the kids around. “Where is everybody?”

 

“Playing inside,” one of them answered with a shrug, gesturing to their hut. Tomi raised an eyebrow at that.

 

“Why don’t they play out here?” he asked and the two tensed up. They exchanged nervous glances before turning to him.

 

“Well….we’re not allowed to go near the forest.” He answered. Tomi understood what he meant. Games like tag or playing with a ball needed an open area and they can’t play in the middle of the village without getting in everyone’s way.

 

The other boy gulped. “B-Besides, what if the T-Trico comes back?” he stuttered and the other seemed to share the same thought.

 

 Tomi grimaced and wanted to tell them that no, it couldn’t be a Trico. There was only one around and he wasn’t evil nor dangerous. Trico was nothing like the legends made him out to be and Tomi had seen it with his own eyes.

 

There had to be a way to prove this to them.

 

Tomi said goodbye and hurried over to the men’s hut. He looked around frantically until he saw his father’s friend sharpening his spear.

 

“Akira!”

 

“Oh hello, Tomi. What can I do for you?” he asked with a smile.

 

Tomi bit his lip hesitating for a moment before asking. “Um…can you tell me about what happen last night?”

 

Akira stiffened and his smile immediately dropped. “Uh…Tomi, you know we’re not supposed to discuss that with children, right?” he said, clearly uncomfortable talking about this.

 

“But I really want to know!” Tomi insisted.

 

“Sorry boy, but these are the chief’s orders.” He replied.

 

“Can you at least tell me what the beast looked like?” he asked, hoping his desperation wouldn’t show. “I just want to see if it matches the ones from the story.”

 

The man looked conflicted for a moment before sighing in defeat. “Fine, I’ll tell you.”

 

Tomi smiled. “Thanks, Akira!”

 

“Alright, let me remember…” He said rubbing his beard in thought. “Well, the thing was huge, bigger than any animal I’ve seen in my life.” He spread his arms wide to demonstrate.

 

Okay, that can be said to a lot of legendary creatures which makes the beast from last night less likely to be a Trico.

“I couldn’t tell what kind of animal it was supposed to be though. I mean it looked almost like a dog, but also like a cat.”

 

Tomi stiffened and his breathing hitched.

 

_No._

 

“And it had two big wings and sharp claws. Oh and I think it had horns too. A strange combination if you ask me.”

 

_NO!_

 

The boy’s heart was pounding in his chest as his blood ran cold. His stomach churned and he felt sick all of a sudden.

 

_This can’t be happening. There had to be a mistake. No, no, no, no-_

 

“Tomi?”

 

The boy didn’t know what kind of expression was on his face, but it was enough to get the man to stop talking and look at him in concern. “Are you alright?” he asked and seemed to regret telling him all of this.

 

“I…” It took the boy a moment to get his mouth to move. “I-I’m fine. It’s just sounds really scary. You must be _really_ brave to have fought it off with the others,” he said hoping to change the subject. Akira was kind of person who enjoyed showing off and gloating about his achievements.

 

And luckily, that’s exactly what happened. Akira immediately perked up and grinned proudly. “Well, it was nothing I couldn’t handle. I even managed to land a hit on that beast when we surrounded it and…..”

 

The man continued talking, but the boy could barely hear what he was saying. His mind having gone blank as he let everything he was told sink in.

 

Why? Nothing made sense anymore. Trico wasn’t a vicious monster. He never tried hurting him before even when he had the chance to. This was the same creature that saved his life twice, that he had fallen asleep against, that he played with all this time!

 

Tomi’s lip quivered as thanked Akira and turned around before the man could see his eyes welling up with tears.

 

**\-------**

 

Trico slowly woke up, letting out a soft yawn and stretched. He then stared at the cave entrance expectantly. He waited like that for several minutes until he finally gave up and laid down in defeat.

 

It’s been four days since the last time he had seen the boy and he was starting to get anxious. Where was he? Why didn’t come back yet? He never took this long before.

 

Trico looked over to the ball the boy left for him. Being more careful this time, he reached out and began pushing it around in boredom. For a while that was the only sound in the cave until the ball slipped out of his grasp and rolled several feet away from him.

 

Trico couldn’t bring himself to go get it and instead lay there dejectedly. He didn’t know what do right now. The boy’s visits were the only thing he had looked forward to in years.

 

When escaped from his home long ago and came to this place, the sense of freedom had overwhelmed him at first. There was just so much to do and nothing could hold him back as he explored the caves and forests, but over time everything around him became less and less interesting.

 

Days blended together and his loneliness grew more and more unbearable, but there was nothing he could do about it because this was the only place he felt safe in, where they can never find him.

 

When the tiny human was around, the beast felt a little less lonely. The boy would always offer him food, pets and play with him whenever he asked while looking at him with so much adoration.

 

It was only time when Trico felt cared for.

 

He stood by the cave entrance, staring at the distance tiredly. It was then another thought entered his mind. What if….what if something happened to the boy? What if he didn’t return because he was hurt or worse?

 

Trico never thought of that and worry filled his chest. He had to leave. If the boy really was in danger then he had to find him.

 

He went over and picked up the ball carefully in his mouth. He then stepped outside the cave only to hesitate and step back inside. He didn’t know what to do. He had never left this mountain in years and didn’t know what to expect if he does now. A sense of apprehension washed over him at the thought of what could be waiting for him out there.

 

It was then he caught a glimpse of the painting on the wall that the boy made, the one of the human and the beast.

 

Seeing it gave him the resolve he needed.

 

Steeling himself, Trico headed out.

**\-------**

 

“Dear, what’s wrong?” Tomi’s dad asked his wife, noticing the concerned look on her face.

 

She sighed and ran a hand through hair. “It’s our son. I don’t know what happened, but he’s been acting strange for a while now.”

 

Their son had always been a cheerful energetic child, but she could see none of that in him right now. He spends a lot of his time alone and his caretaker had told her he hadn’t been eating much during meal time.

 

What happened? What caused this change? Whenever she tried to ask him, he would close up and tell her he was tired or something like that.

 

“Maybe he’s still shaken by the beast’s attack. We can’t really blame him if he was. I mean, that creature could have taken anybody.” He said, his words hanging in the air and they both knew the implications behind them. Their son could have been taken that night and the thought never ceased to plague them both.

 

The fact that the beast was still out there and could come back again didn’t help put their minds at ease either.

 

Seeing her face fall, he tried to assure her. “I could go talk to him. Maybe he would tell me what’s upsetting him.”

 

She nodded gratefully at her husband. “Please do.”

 

The man spent several minutes searching for the boy until he found him sitting on a barrel looking at the people going about their day.

 

“Hello, son.”

 

“Hi,” Tomi replied quietly. He immediately took notice of the dark circles around his eyes and frowned, kneeling down next to him. “Tomi, you haven’t been acting like yourself for quite some time now. Is there something the matter?”

 

“I’ll be fine,” the boy answered without looking at him. The man blinked. He said “I’ll be fine,” instead of his usual “I’m fine,” so there _was_ something wrong. He gently placed his hand over Tomi’s back.

 

“Son, if it’s the return of the beast that’s bothering you then don’t worry. There will be men guarding the huts at night to stop it if it attacks again.” He said reassuringly.

 

_That’s not it._ Tomi wanted to say, wanted to scream it out!

 

The beast had been living in the forbidden mountain for years and never came near their village, not until Tomi went to the mountain, but he couldn’t say that. He couldn’t let them know that this might be all his fault. They’ll be furious with him, they might hate him because he should have listened and everyone was in danger and there was nothing he could do or say to change what happened and-

 

Tomi blinked away his misty eyes and nodded at his dad.

 

The man smiled and gave him a pat on the back. “Now how about you go play with your friends?”

 

“Okay,” he said quietly and made his way to the group of children playing the near the edge of the forest. Apparently they were no longer afraid like they once were of going anywhere outside the village.

 

Tomi stood there for a while unsure of what do before someone suddenly touched his shoulder. He looked over to see one of his friends running away from him.

 

“You’re it!” he called out to Tomi.

 

The boy blinked and then felt a smile slowly spread across his face. Wasting no time, he began chasing after him. For several minutes the boy ran across the clearing paying with his friends and laughing in delight. He was having fun for the time in days after feeling nothing but guilt and sadness that kept him up during some nights. Just for a moment everything felt almost normal again.

 

But that peace didn’t last long.

 

Suddenly, Tomi froze up when a loud cry cut through the air. He turned around to see what was wrong and what he saw made him go pale.

 

Far at the edge of the forest, Trico’s head was poking out of the trees. Everything went still for a second almost as if time froze before a terrified scream filled the air followed by many others. The children quickly scrambled to get away as the huge beast stepped out of the trees looking down searchingly at them.

 

A boy much younger than Tomi suddenly tripped in his panic and fell on the ground. He began crying in pain. Trico ears fell a little and made his way over to the kid.

 

“No, stop!” Without thinking, Tomi ran towards the two and stood in front of the kid, staring up at the beast for the first time since the incident and he couldn’t help the dread he felt at that moment.

 

Trico made an excited noise as he thrust his face into the child, startling him for a moment before he realized the beast was nuzzling against him. Trico then pulled away and dropped something in front of him.

 

Tomi blinked when he saw it was his ball. He looked up at the beast in confusion. “Trico?”

 

The beast tilted his head, looking at him curiously.

 

_He doesn’t want to hurt me._ Tomi thought in surprise and felt his heart swell as he slowly reached his hand out to him.

 

“There it is!”

 

Tomi glanced back and gasped in horror when the village warriors came running towards them with their weapons and dogs that were barking viciously at their direction. He quickly turned to the beast.

 

“Trico, don’t stay here. Run!” He exclaimed. The beast hesitated almost as if he didn’t want to leave him before finally turning around and dashing into the forest.

 

“Don’t let it escape!” Tomi’s father shouted as the warriors ran past the boy and he watched as they disappeared in the trees with the beast.

 

Tomi’s mind was racing frantically. What was he supposed to do!? A part of him wanted to run after him while another cynical one wanted him to do nothing and leave him. After all, the beast still had kidnapped one of their own.

 

He could hear people calling out for him from behind him, one of them he was sure was his mom, but the boy’s gaze remained fixed on the path the men taken.

 

He thought back on everything that happened over the last two weeks. Him meeting the beast for the first time, getting saved by him, playing with him and growing to care about him.

 

And a big part of the child knew Trico felt the same way.

 

All of the doubts he previous had vanished and without hesitation, Tomi ran into the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. I’m sure Trico’s backstory is probably clear at this point. I also think the next one will be last chapter for this story.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, this is the last chapter. Thanks for your support. I really appreciate it!
> 
> Enjoy the final chapter of Barriers!

Tomi ran as fast as he could through the forest, following the path the hunters took. He could hear Trico’s growls and the hunters’ shouts in the distance. They were following him to the mountain.

 

Gritting his teeth, the boy sprinted through the trees for a while until he reached a clearing where the hunters seemed to have stopped. Tomi immediately went to hide behind a tree and watched them silently.

 

“I can’t believe it got away. Where can a thing that huge hide?” One man said while another was searching the ground.

 

Tomi sighed. So they hadn’t caught the beast yet? That put his mind a little at ease.

 

“Should we split up?”

 

“No, have you see the size of that monster? I-I don’t want to be alone when facing that thing!” Someone stammered.

 

“Let’s just keep should keep looking. I’m sure it hasn’t gone far away.” Tomi immediately recognized the voice as his dad’s which complicated everything. The fact that he sounded so angry didn’t help.

 

The boy gulped as the men walked away and he stepped from behind the tree, eyes widen in horror. So they didn’t plan on just chasing him away? They were going to…..

 

No, he couldn’t allow that. He had to stop them. He had to save to Trico!

 

Without a second thought, the child took a different direction. Luckily, he passed this place many times in the past and knew which path to take unlike the hunters, but he knew it wouldn’t take them long until they tracked the beast down.

 

Tomi got hit by some branches and nearly tripped twice, but he refused to stop.

 

**\------**

 

Trico sprinted away from the village, hearing the panicked cries of the humans behind him. He should have known better, should have known the humans will react to him this way.

 

He suddenly stopped and looked back to see a group of humans coming after him. It would be easy to fight them, but that’s not what the boy wanted him to do. Wasting no time, he dashed through the trees hoping to lose them there.

 

After a while, he had found himself growing tired and immediately sat down to rest. The beast couldn’t fight the fear he was feeling. He never been here to this forest before and had no idea how where to go. The hunters could find him at any second.

 

“Trico?”

 

Trico’s ears perked up and his eyes widen.

 

“Trico, where are you?”

 

Without thinking, he quickly sat up and followed the calls. He looked around frantically before hurrying down the forest trail and thrusting his head through of the trees, startling Tomi.

 

Trico made a happy noise and quickly pushed his face against the child, feeling safe now that his friend was now here. The boy will make everything better.

 

“I was so worried about you.” Tomi rubbed Trico’s face gently, glad that he wasn’t hurt.

 

“We need to get you out of here now!” The child said in hushed whisper, looking around anxiously. If the hunters caught up to them then he had no idea how he’ll defend the beast from them.

 

“You have to go back to the cave!” He muttered urgently, but the beast’s ears fell in uncertainty. It took him a moment to realize what the problem was.

 

“Do…do you know how to get back? He asked even though he already knew the answer. If Trico had been leaving the mountain often then there was no way the villager wouldn’t have spotted him at some point during the last ten years.

 

Biting his lip, he raked his head for a moment for a solution. Finally, an idea hit him. While the beast didn’t know the way back, Tomi did. “Hold still,” He said as he slowly approached him and grabbed on to the feathers on his leg. Trico remained still, wondering what the kid was planning to do until he felt him sitting on his back.

 

Feeling quite nervous, Tomi pointed to the left. “Go there!”

 

Blinking, Trico glanced at the child on his back before turning towards the direction he was pointing at. Not knowing what he wanted, he began walking that way. Tomi yelped and grabbed a handful of feathers as he tried to avoid falling off his back.

 

“Turn left!” He exclaimed again.

 

Trico made a confused noise and hesitated, not knowing what the boy wanted to accomplish from this.

 

“Come on, go left!” Tomi tried again, hoping he would understand.

 

Slowly, the beast began walking in that direction. After a couple of minutes of this, Trico finally seemed to catch on to what he was doing and there was less hesitation in his gait.

 

Tomi grinned in relief. He could see the mountain peak through the trees. It won’t be long until they were out of danger.

 

Trico stopped walking altogether. Tomi blinked in confusion. “What’s wrong?” he asked, but Trico didn’t respond to his voice. He was busy staring at something in front of them, a low growl coming out of him. The boy frowned and carefully climbed down to see what was bothering him.

 

It was a piece of old metal. He stepped closer to it and touched it. It felt rusty and he assumed it had been left here a long time ago.

 

Strange. It almost looked like a piece of armor.

 

The boy turned and his breathing hitched under the intense violet gaze of the beast. Even though it wasn’t directed at him, he could feel his glare cut right through him. Whatever this thing was, Trico was familiar with it and not in a good way.

 

Without a second thought, the boy tried pushing the source of his friend’s distress out of the way. It was quite heavy, but he kept trying until he managed to push it into the bushes where it can’t be seen.

 

Sighing in exhaustion, he turned to see Trico’s eyes returning to normal.

 

“Alright, let’s keep goin-”

 

“There it is!”

 

Tomi felt the blood drain from his face as the hunters stepped out of the trees. No, no. How did they catch up to them so quickly!?

 

Trico growled and his eyes flashed defensively as the humans charged at him. One man hurled his spear at the beast, missing his shoulder by an inch.

 

Tomi stood there, hidden from sight behind the beast. There was no way out of this. He had stop them before they killed him!

 

“STOP!” He yelled, running over and standing in front of Trico.

 

The men gasped in shock. “Tomi, what are you doing here!? Get away from that beast!” His father yelled in panic.

 

Tomi felt a lump rise in his throat. This was it. There was no turning back now. He had to tell them. “No, he’s my friend!”

 

A deafening silence fell. Tomi felt a knot form in his stomach now that their secret was out. _They knew. THEY KNEW!_

 

“You’re….you’re friends with that beast!?”

 

“Have you lost your mind, kid!?”

 

“Son, what do you mean by that?” His father asked with a shocked expression as if he couldn’t believe what was he was hearing.

 

Tomi gulped and spoke up. “W-when the Elder told us the story about the beast in the mountain, I got curious and went to the mountain to see if it’s true.” He said, wincing at their startled looks and knew he was deep trouble by admitting this. “When I first saw him, I ran away and fell into a hole. Then Trico got me out and let me go. That’s how I got those injuries that day.”

 

Bewilderment immediately flashed in his father’s face. “Then….all those times you left the village…?”

 

“I was with Trico,” Tomi concluded, avoiding the man’s gaze. No one said anything for a while as they tried processing everything he said.

 

“So then….you’re the reason why the beast attacked the village!” A man in a blue attire growled and Tomi flinched. “No one seen that monster for years until you went to the mountain. For all we know, he might have managed to find our village thanks to you!”

 

The thought seemed to cross everyone’s minds and they turned to the boy for answers.

 

Tomi’s hands shook, but he didn’t know from what. Anger because the man called his friend a monster or fear of what he said being true.

 

“Trico isn’t monster. I played with him almost every day. H-he saved me from a bear once. I even slept with him a few days ago and he didn’t try to hurt me. There had to be a mistake!” The boy shouted.

 

When the hunters didn’t look convinced, he felt his eyes mist over, fear and despair filling him.

 

“I think the boy is right.”

 

Everyone turned to Akira in surprise who was staring at the beast thoughtfully.

 

“What are you talking about? You really believe anything he is saying!?” One of them muttered in disbelieve.

 

“This isn’t the same beast that attacked the village.” He said and everyone was taken aback by this. “That one was much bigger and its tail looked different. I think its face was also covered with a mask of some kind. I was there when it attacked and I’m pretty this was not the one.”

 

Tomi blinked. The idea of another beast being around was both scary and also brought him relief. _So Trico really is innocent!_

 

“Even if that’s true, that doesn’t mean you’re out of trouble, son.” His dad stated firmly and the boy flinched.

 

**\-------**

 

“Where are they? They still haven’t returned yet!” Tomi’s mom said as she paced in front of the village worriedly. The last time she had seen her boy he was running after the hunters and the beast. The thought of him being anywhere near that thing terrified her.

 

“I’m sure they are alright. Maybe Tomi just wanted to make sure his father was alright.” One of her friends said reassuringly.

 

The woman stopped and sighed, knowing that she shouldn’t be this worried. Her son will probably return at any moment with his father safe and sound.

 

“Look, they’re back!” Someone suddenly shouted. She quickly looked at the edge of the forest to see the hunters slowly coming their way. She could see her husband with them, but then she noticed how uneasy he and the other men looked. Why would they act like that and where was her son-

 

Her thoughts came to an immediate halt when the beast stepped out of the trees behind them. Everyone around her gasped and screamed warnings at the men to watch out for the monster behind them, but the hunters barely reacted to their cries.

 

“Calm down, everyone. There is no need to afraid. The beast won’t attack anyone.” Her husband said, sounding unsure about his own words.

 

“Wha-what are you saying!?”

 

“That thing had kidnapped a kid from our village!”

 

“W-Where is Tomi?” She managed to ask her husband who flinched at her question.

 

“Uhh…”

 

“I’m up here!” Everyone looked up to see Tomi sitting on top of the beast’s head, grinning widely as if nothing was wrong and he wasn’t sitting on top of a giant bloodthirsty beast. “Hi, mom!” He said sheepishly when he spotted her.

 

The woman stared at her son speechless for a moment and then fainted.

 

**\------**

 

After leaving the beast to be guarded by the hunters, Tomi was taken to the chief’s hut where he explained everything for him and the Elder. He reluctantly told them about his trip to the forbidden mountain, spending time with Trico and the conclusion they made that another beast had attacked their village that night.  

 

However, even though Trico had proven not to be vicious, the chief wasn’t willing to trust the beast. He wanted to send Trico back to mountain and make sure that nobody goes there ever again.

 

An idea came to the boy then. “What if more beasts attacked the village again? Sending Trico to the mountain isn’t going to stop them from coming.” He had stated. “What if I can train Trico to protect the village and drive them away? Would you let him stay?”

 

The chief blinked at the idea and rubbed his beard in thought. After sharing a glance with the Elder, he nodded.

 

“Very well. We’ll give him a chance.”

 

**\------**

 

Tomi sighed as he scrubbed the last stain from the wall. Despite everything, the chief still wanted to punish him for breaking the rules and heading to the forbidden place. Now he had to clean the walls and the floors of the boys’ hut for a whole month. A punishment he took without any complaints. It could have been a lot worse.

 

Whipping the sweat from his forehead, he noticed a dog coming over to him and barking expectantly. Smiling a little, Tomi reached out and began petting it.

 

Just then, the dog pulled away from him and quickly ran away. Tomi blinked in confusion and then looked back to see Trico glaring at the fleeing dog.

 

It took Tomi a moment to realize what happened. _Was he actually jealous!?_

 

A huge grin split the boy’s face as he dropped the rag in the bucket and headed over to the beast, petting his face and laughing. He then glanced over to see the some villagers watching them.

 

While the adults seemed wary, the children were staring at Trico with unconcealed curiosity and Tomi knew it was only a matter of time before they deemed the beast safe and swarmed around him.

 

There was still so much he didn’t understand though. Where were the other beasts? Where did Trico come from? Why did he react with fear to the symbol he drew in the cave and the piece of armor in the forest?

 

A light nudge from his side caused him to look up at his friend and the boy found himself smiling.

 

Maybe someday he willl find all the answers.

 

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the story is finally done. Thank you so much for all the support! I’m really glad you all enjoyed this fic!
> 
> Now I would like to thank everyone who supported my fic Barriers!
> 
> Person
> 
> Andrew
> 
> Until next time! :)


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